Buff-breasted Sandpipers
I’ve been back home on the Faroe for a little more than a month and during september I got to do some birding every now and then. So how did september turn out?
Exactly 30 Yellow-browed Warblers have been reported (only two of which I didn’t see myself), so there has been a massive influx of the species. But numbers do not seem as high as in 2011, where I found 19 Yellow-browed in one day. But if places like Suðuroy, Svínoy and Sandoy were covered many more birds would have been found.
Fat-looking 1cy male Bluethroat
When it comes to rarities Semi-palmated Sandpiper, Blyth’s Reed Warbler, Citrine Wagtail, 2 Buff-breasted Sandpipers and the Osprey likely to be of american origin were the highlights.
Barred Warblers were very scarce in september with only 3 birds found. Other scarce birds include a few Whinchats and Common Rosefinches, 4 Gadwalls and a single Icterine Warbler.
Icterine Warbler foraging on the grass
The first 18 days of the month were dominated by westerly wind and only a few european migrants arrived. Later in the month more easterly winds occurred and numbers of migrants increased. The two most common warblers were Lesser Whitethroats and Willow Warblers, but Yellow-browed Warbler was almost as common as Willow Warbler in the end of the month.
Bluehtroat – really one of the very good and charming birds that just look “rare”.
A more massive arrival occurred on the 30th september with good numbers of warblers present in Viðareiði and on the 1st of october a Bluethroat was present in Árnafirði.
“Greyish” Yellow-browed Warbler
It is interesting (as always) to see how the Yellow-browed Warblers from mid september are bright and “typical” were as some of the birds arriving later tend to be darker or paler and calling with a call that is intermediate between Yellow-browed and Hume’s Warbler.
And of course there are always the Redpolls…
Now it will be interesting to see what October brings (if only there were more birders around)…
Silas Olofson
Birdingfaroes 